Contributed on Feb 5, 2006

based on 67 ratings

| 19,484 views

Christians come in all different shapes and sizes. Different backgrounds make it difficult for them to all get along. Patience is the Spirit given quality that helps us fit everyone together into a church that praises God.

OPEN: How many of you like to put together jigsaw puzzles. Diana and I have always doing that… although we’ve not done it nearly so much since we’ve had kids. Sometime ago, I ran across the following article:
“Everything I needed to know about life, I learned from a jigsaw puzzle.”
1. Establish
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Contributed on Feb 13, 2006

based on 62 ratings

| 21,887 views

Believe it or not, love is hard for the world to define. Even psychology and psychiatry have difficulty explaining it. But God doesn’t. Why is that so?

OPEN: A visiting Revivalist was impressed by an older couple in the church where he was holding Revival. The wife seemed to be half-turned toward her husband holding both his hands in hers. Every time he looked toward them he was impressed by the fact they were holding hands.
After the service
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Contributed on Feb 20, 2006

based on 186 ratings

| 30,982 views

Billy Sunday observed "If there’s no joy in your religion, you’ve got a leak in your faith." In a world that is often discouraging and frustrating, how can a Christian keep the Joy of the Lord as their strength?

OPEN: In 1937 architect Frank Lloyd Wright built a house for industrialist Hibbard Johnson. One rainy evening Johnson was entertaining distinguished guests for dinner when the roof began to leak.
The water seeped through directly above Johnson himself, dripping steadily onto his bald head.
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Contributed on Feb 26, 2006

based on 65 ratings

| 25,436 views

According to a Gallup Poll, many people believe "peace of mind" is critical for success in life. So why doesn’t everybody experience this peace?

Begin by reciting Galatians 5:22-23a
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”
OPEN: Some time back the Gallup organization polled Americans about their most important criteria for judging personal success. They
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Contributed on Mar 6, 2006

based on 66 ratings

| 16,653 views

We all like to think of our selves as good, decent, and kind people. But, I was shocked to find out that the Bible tells us kindness doesn’t come naturally to us.

(this was a sermon centered on the “Fruit of the Spirit" in Galatians 5:22-23a)
Open: A Sunday school teacher was telling her class the story of the Good Samaritan, in which a man was beaten, robbed and left for dead. She described the situation in vivid detail so her students would catch the
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Contributed on Mar 12, 2006

The Bible tells us that we should strive for goodness in our lives... but Jesus said no one was good except God. How can we be asked to do something that only God can accomplish?

Open with audience reciting the following verse: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control...” Galatians 5:22-23a
OPEN: A preacher once spoke of the fact that some of the people in his congregation had gotten in the
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Contributed on Mar 20, 2006

based on 57 ratings

| 13,744 views

Some Christians never grow up in their faith. And yet, Galatians 5 tells me that God’s Spirit can help me have more faith in my life. How does He do that?

OPEN: When I listen to Christian radio in the evenings, I’ve often tuned in to a call-in program featuring a wise, grandfatherly gentleman who has that calm reassuring voice capable of melting fear. One night a lady, who was obviously crying, called in and related the following: “I was born blind,
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